Tuesday

Nov 14, 2017 at 3:22 PMNov 14, 2017 at 3:22 PM

DAYTONA BEACH — County Judge Shirley Green cited increased family obligations as a grandmother for her impending retirement only one year into a six-year term she won after a bitter campaign, but she also is apparently facing a complaint.

Green’s campaign consultant, Mario Davis, said in a phone interview that he had heard that a complaint had been filed against her. But he does not know any details and said he is sorry to see her go.

“I would love to see her continuing to serve. I think she has done the people of Volusia well,” Davis said.

David Thomas, an attorney and critic of Green, said he did not file any complaint against Green, but he wrote in an email that he was contacted by an investigator for the Judicial Qualifications Commission, which checks into complaints regarding judges. Thomas said he believes the investigator was given his name by someone who filed a complaint against Green related to her campaign.

Green declined comment to The News-Journal, according to a message relayed by court communications officer Ludi Lelis.

Green’s retirement comes only one year after winning a six-year term to the position which pays $138,000 annually. Green is 62 while the retirement age for judges is 70.

Green was the first black woman elected Volusia County judge when she won her seat in 2004. She was unopposed in 2010.

Her departure will leave only one black judge in the 7th Judicial Circuit covering Volusia, Flagler, St. Johns and Putnam counties. The circuit has 42 judges, although one of those seats is currently vacant. The other black jurist is County Judge Dawn Fields. Chief Judge Raul Zambrano is Hispanic.

In a Sept. 22, 2017, letter sent to the governor, Green said she was retiring as county judge effective Nov. 20, 2017. Green thanked her constituents, but cited her family as reasons for leaving the bench.

“As a grandmother, my duties to my family have increased and I humbly will retire,” Green wrote.

The Judicial Qualifications Commission is prohibited from saying whether it has or has not received a complaint against a judge, said Mike Schneider, executive director and legal counsel for the commission.

If the commission’s investigative panel finds a complaint has probable cause then it files formal charges, which then become public, Schneider said.

The retirement or resignation of a judge sometimes ends an investigation but not always, Schneider said.

The commission is in the midst of a case against a different judge in the 7th Circuit arising from another 2016 race. The commission has found probable cause that Circuit Judge Scott Dupont, who presides over cases in Flagler and Putnam counties, violated judicial rules by posting “scandalous information” about his challenger Malcolm Anthony and Anthony’s family. Dupont defeated Anthony on election day.

Green, too, won her race. Green managed to beat back an aggressive challenge from DeLand attorney Heather Caeners by 51 percent of the vote to Caener’s 49 percent.

Caeners accused Green of not following the law dealing with eviction cases and favoring tenants.

Green denied Caeners' allegations

Green raised total contributions of $113,341 for the campaign, including $39,428.72 in loans from her to her campaign, according to records.

Caeners raised $45,018.06, including $23,465 in loans to herself.

Caeners wouldn't say whether she had filed a complaint against Green.

“I have no comment other than I am putting my name in for the position,” Caeners wrote in an email.

The 7th Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission has set a deadline of 5 p.m. Thursday to submit applications for Green’s seat. The commission will then hold interviews tentatively scheduled for December before nominating several applicants to Gov. Rick Scott who will make an appointment.

It is unknown whether one of Green’s 2016 campaign ads is the subject of any complaint. The ad showed a picture of Green between a man and a woman.

Beneath the picture was a quote attributed to longtime retired judge S. James Foxman, who left the bench in 2011 and for whom the courthouse on Ridgewood Avenue is named.

The quote reads: “Appointed to the bench under the Bush Administration, Judge Green is a former colleague who shares my values and principles. Judge Green understands the needs of our community. We can trust her to make the right decisions on the bench to protect us and our loved ones. Join me in voting to keep Judge Green on the bench!”

In a recent interview, Foxman said the man in the picture is not him. Foxman also said he didn’t say the words attributed to him in the quote.

Foxman declined to comment on whether he had heard anything regarding a complaint filed against Green. But Foxman said he liked Green.

The political ad has other problems. Green was not appointed as the ad suggests. And even if she had been appointed, the Bush administration would not have been involved.

Judicial canons prohibit the introduction of politics into judicial races, which are supposed to be nonpartisan. The mention of the “Bush administration” could be taken as interjecting politics into the race.

Davis, the campaign consultant, said he put the ad together and that a miscommunication led to the quote attributed to Foxman. He said that he believed the people in the picture were friends of Green. He said other ads for her also featured people who were not the ones in the featured quote.

Davis also said he believes people would recognize that the person on the ad was not Foxman.

“I think everybody knows who Judge Foxman is,” Davis said.

Davis said that Green was doing a good job but respects her decision to retire.

“I don’t think that she would make that decision if that wasn’t the best decision for her to make,” Davis said.

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